England 'not thinking about points difference' against France — SkimNews
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- Brad O'Neill said England will not enter their October 24 match against France thinking about points difference, instead retaining the hard-nosed approach used against Tonga and focusing on execution.
- England lost their opening match 30-12 to Tonga and now need a large win over France and another substantial win over Papua New Guinea to keep their semi-final hopes alive.
- Brian McDermott named an unchanged 19-man matchday squad for the 7.35am match in Perth on October 24, a sign that he did not plan radical changes against France.
- Samoa beat France 78-4, leaving the final semi-final place in the group dependent on points difference between Samoa and England.
- Tonga must beat Samoa in their final group game in a fortnight, with every other result going to form, for England to retain any chance of taking the last semi-final place.
Why it matters: England's semi-final place is contingent on Tonga beating Samoa in the final group round in a fortnight and every other match going to form, with points difference then separating England and Samoa. That makes the October 24 match against France part of the qualification arithmetic even as O'Neill says the team will not chase the margin.
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